Love is Blind
by KelliP
Summary: They say love is blind, but Gates most certainly is not. Their first Valentine's Day would definitely have been more romantic if the Captain hadn't been dining at the next table. No spoilers, just fun.


**A/N:** No spoilers. That's all. Enjoy.

* * *

**LOVE IS BLIND**

* * *

The candle in the centre of the table flickers, bathes Castle in a warm glow as it reflects in his bright blue eyes. The corners of his eyes crinkle happily but the other lines of his face have been smoothed out as he relaxes. It makes him look so young as he smiles at her, no trace of the hard week that the precinct had rained down on them.

"I told you we'd solve the case in time for Valentine's Day," Castle smiles at her, a hint of cockiness underlying his tone.

Through narrowed eyes Beckett shoots him a look, but her mouth twitches upward against her will. Masking her face, she throws back at him, "No thanks to you."

She is, of course, referring to his endless stream of pestering that was _supposedly_ a reminder of how many hours they had to solve the case. As if she wasn't already stressed enough about solving the case in a timely manner without him harping on about Valentine's Day.

Castle simply mocks hurt at her comment and clutches dramatically at his heart, an action that lifts her cheeks as she smiles in amusement. A smirk then breaks out on his own lips when he notes his antics have had the desired effect on her.

"Just admit it- you wouldn't have solved the case without me," Castle sings across the table in a teasing voice. Beckett just presses her lips together stubbornly and averts her gaze.

She hates that he's right.

"In all seriousness… can we put all talk of the precinct to rest for the night?" Castle requests. "It's Valentine's Day. Our _first_ Valentine's Day, and after the fiasco that was Christmas I have to make this up to you."

She chuckles at the memory of Christmas, when she gave up her own tradition to head to his loft for the holiday. The night hadn't turned out quite as expected, Beckett finding herself on the receiving end of gushing apologies when he had no gift for her.

But she lets it go. For now, at least. Instead, Beckett grins and peers across at him with batting eyelids. Without warning, she kicks off her shoe, slides her stocking-covered foot across the soft navy carpet. Slowly, she hooks her leg around his ankle, her toes slipping up under his slacks to graze along his skin.

Across the table, Castle's face immediately slackens. He gulps, eyes darkening with a wild look as he fails to mask the arousal that hits him hard. He clears his throat and averts his gaze (as if that will help). Shifting uncomfortably in his seat he reaches for the glass of iced water that sits before him, taking a long, cooling sip as he tries to clamp down the fire in his veins. Beckett smirks at the knowledge of what she can do with barely a touch.

He's just about schooled his features when his face suddenly slackens again. This time, though, there's no trace of arousal on his face. Just a sudden and cutting panic as he stares with wide eyes over her shoulder. Before she has a chance to follow his eye line, he's picking up the menu, opening it wide before spreads it across the length of the table and ducks behind it. She frowns, but then he's hissing at her and waving an insistent hand for her to follow his lead.

"What the hell are you doing?" she questions, half-leaning across the table to hide behind the menu.

Castle gulps, voice small and guilty when he answers. "I just realised who told me about this place."

Beckett blinks. "Who?"

He nods over her shoulder in the direction of the entrance. She twists in her seat and peers around, eyes scanning the sea of faces in search of whom Castle is talking about. Then, standing in wait on the other side of the hostess desk and to be seated at ay moment, Beckett sees her.

Captain Victoria Gates.

* * *

Still reeling at the sudden presence of her boss, Beckett whips her head back around and levels a glare at Castle. "Why the _hell_ were you talking to my boss about romantic restaurants?" she hisses.

He shrugs and waves his free arm around in an _I-don't-know_ fashion. "I was throwing ideas back and forward with Ryan about Valentine's Day in the break room one day. She just happened to walk in and join the conversation."

"And you didn't think to stop talking about the dinner you were planning for the detective she doesn't know you're dating?"

"Forget about that. It's in the past. What do we do _now_?"

"Bathrooms," she tells him. "Quick. Before she turns around."

They don't have a chance to pause and think it through. The hostess has already greeted Gates and her husband and is scanning through the list of reservations in search of their table number. Curling a hand around her elbow Castle all but yanks her up off her seat. It's ungraceful and entirely unromantic, but effective. She barely has the time to grab her purse off the table before he's half-dragging her across the room.

"My _shoe_," she hisses.

Castle snaps his head around. "What?"

"My shoe," she repeats. "It's still under the table."

"Why didn't you put it back on?"

"Because you hauled me out of there," she growls.

"Well, if you weren't trying to seduce me in the first place, it would still be on your foot," Castle shoots back.

She scoffs. "Seduce you? You really think I _need_ to seduce you? You take the blink of an eye as an invitation. No effort needed."

"Batting your eyelids is completely different to blinking."

He is, of course, referring to the memory of their six-month anniversary. Now it's two months later and they're still arguing about who came onto whom.

"I was not batting my eyelids," she defends herself.

Castle waves his hands around as if erasing the conversation. "All right, all right. It doesn't matter," he shushes her. "We need to focus on the problem at hand. How are we supposed to get out of here-"

"And get my shoe," Beckett interrupts.

"-and get your shoe without Gates seeing us?"

"Back exit," she supplies an answer.

"And your shoe?"

Beckett doesn't respond. Just grabs the waiter passing by and promises a tip to grab the shoe from underneath table forty-seven. The young man leaves with a quizzical expression on his face, but returns successfully a half-minute later.

"One more thing," Castle requests before the man can duck off. "Where's your back exit?"

The waiter shakes his head apologetically. "We don't have one."

Castle stares at him, voice dry and unamused. "You have to have a back exit."

The man shakes his head insistently. "Only the one through the kitchen."

Castle claps his hands and turns back to her. "Problem solved. Let's go."

The waiter quickly blocks Castle before he can side step toward the kitchen. "Sir, I'm sorry, but it's not for patrons."

Castle holds up a pausing finger up, signalling to the man to wait just one moment as he digs a fifty out of his jacket pocket. "Would this change your mind?" He tugs on either end of the bill as if trying to make the offer more appealing.

Beckett just rolls her eyes and quickly interjects before the waiter walks away in disinterest. "I'm a cop," she explains. "And we need to use your back exit. Now."

"Can I see your badge?"

With gritted teeth she glares at Castle. He cringes with the guilt that he's the reason she doesn't have her badge on her.

"_As hot as I find your badge and gun, you are not bringing them on our date_," he'd told her not one hour ago. "_You really think you're going to need them at dinner_?"

"I don't have it on me at the moment," she forces out. "But-"

"Then I can't help you," the waiter interrupts. He turns on his heels not a moment later, leaving the hope of their escape crumbling in his wake.

Beckett arches a demanding eyebrow at Castle. "Now what, Genius?"

"An emergency exit?" he offers sheepishly.

"So the fire station can bill you five-hundred dollars for setting off the alarm?" Beckett dismisses the idea with a shake of her head. "I don't think so."

"I think that's quite a reasonable price to escape from the wrath of Gates if she spots us."

"Forget about the price- you'll ruin everyone's evening. Soaking everyone with the overhead sprinklers and forcing them out of the restaurant into the cold? Let's not."

Beside her, Castle scrubs a frustrated hand over his face as a groan rumbles in his chest. "Well, why don't _you_ come up with a solution?"

Her tooth digs into her lower lip in concentration of searching for an escape route for only a moment. "What about the bathroom?" she blurts out. "We could climb out a window?"

Castle's eyes trail over her body, from the curls on her head, down her deep red dress to her spiked heels, and back again. "You really think you're going to climb out a window in that dress and those shoes?"

She clenches her jaw. "My heels are not a problem."

"But that dress is."

"Then don't look if I have to hike it up."

Castle scoffs.

Right. This is Castle. Of course he's going to look.

"Just go look in the men's room to see if there's a window," she orders before pushing herself through the swinging door and into the women's room.

Beckett sighs as the door swings shut behind her. This is ridiculous. It's Valentine's Day and she's hiding from her boss in a bathroom. Her eyes scan the room quickly, looking for some means of escape so they can head home and salvage what's left of the night. The detective moves away from the counters to her right, heading down past the row of cubicles to poke her head around the corner in search for a window.

Nothing.

Letting out a frustrated huff she spins on the spot, turning back to the exit to leave when the door suddenly swings open-

And Gates walks through the door.

Both freeze as they spot each other, blinking in surprise as they take in the sight of the other.

"Detective Beckett," the captain tests her name on her tongue. "I didn't realise you would be dining here tonight."

"I- I'm not," she stutters.

"And yet here you are." Gates arches a disbelieving eyebrow at her, shoots her a stern glare that demands an answer.

Beckett lets out a breath of awkward laughter and shrugs. "I was just-"

Everything happens in slow motion then. The door swings open again with a low swoosh, a heavy footstep scuffing on the tiles as someone enters without looking.

Beckett doesn't even need to look over to know who it is.

"There's no win- Oh." Castle freezes, eyes wide and panicked like a deer caught in headlights. He swallows a thick lump in his throat, stuttering as he speaks. "Captain Gates. What- what a nice surprise."

Gates' response is anything but amused. "Mister Castle, do you not realise this is the ladies room?"

"Oh- is it?" Beckett watches as Castle takes a step back, pretending to double-check the sign on the door. "Well look at that. My mistake. I'll just- uh, yeah. Excuse me."

"Mister Castle," Gates punctuates each word in a low voice, her tone demanding Castle not leave.

He does. Freezing in the doorway Castle swallows a panicked knot in his throat, yet his voice squeaks all the same when he speaks. "Yes?"

"And Detective Beckett," the Captain continues with a glare in her direction.

Beckett draws in a deep breath. "Yes?"

"The next time you two decide to hide your relationship for me," she starts slowly, "It would be wise to remember the precinct elevator has a camera."


End file.
